EU Privacy Directive (Cookie Law)
Introduction

Cookie Law is a new piece of legislation, adopted by all EU countries and comes fully into effect on 26 May 2012.

It is designed to help with privacy requiring websites to obtain consent from visitors to store or retrieve information – and that means all web connected devices, whether a PC, laptop or a smartphone or tablet.

The deal is that any visitor to a website should be made aware of how information is collected by websites and enable them to choose whether or not they want to such information to be collected.

This sounds as if most people will say ‘no’ if asked the question. Well, the choice has to be given – however, many websites will not be fully functional without collecting such information and, indeed, much of the content served to the visitor is driven by an understanding of the historic uses and interests of that visitor.

So, this sounds like a sensible move for the individual but has a number of implications for your business. And indeed, non-compliance could lead you to run the risk of enforcement action or even a fine up to half a million pounds for a serious breach.

What is it?

Most websites use files which are called ‘cookies’ (hence the name of the law) which store information in your web browser during and following your visit to the site. This information can be very useful to the individual. Cookie usage is varied but includes temporary storage of data for shopping carts or searches , tracking usage of websites and help with targeted advertising – meaning that you get relevant advertising to you. To a website owner, the information can be crucial, helping you understand how visitors are using your website, what they, what they don’t like etc. The information is usually anonymous and unlikely to be traceable back to an individual. Nonetheless,  some people are uncomfortable with the information being tracked without their permission.

How does it affect your website?

Almost all websites use cookies and similar technologies – especially company websites, e-commerce sites, and any sites that carry advertising. The new legislation is designed to make people aware that the website is recording information by way of cookies. As a result, your website must avoid the use of cookies or similar technologies, unless the user:

• is provided with clear and comprehensive information about the purposes of the storage of, or access to, that information; and
• has given his or her consent

This can be done through telling users that and why cookies are being used, link to a privacy policy and give an option to turn off the cookies (although this might affect functionality of the site).

This being new legislation, you will almost certainly need to make changes to your website to comply with the law.

What can we do for you?

There is complexity to this of course. Switching off cookies may stop your website from working effectively. How the warning of cookies is displayed may affect the usage of your website.

Don’t worry, there are a few things that Crush can do for you.
We can undertake a Cookie audit for you. This will tell you what cookies are used in your website, how intrusive they are with a list of specific recommendations.

• We’ll add some code to all your pages in your site, this will request the required consent in a styled modal(popup) window and provide a link through to your privacy page.
• We’ll either add or provide relevant text to add to your privacy policy this will outline the cookies you use and why and also provide links for those wishing to adjust their browser settings.

Click on this link or call us on 0845 658 1657 to schedule your Cookie Law Audit to bring you up to date with the current legislation.

So, what is Responsive Design?

You may not have heard the term “responsive design” before but it’s a subject that is gripping the web development world currently. This is an approach to coding and design that aims to accommodate the growing number of web enabled devices and serve them usable content without having to design & build separate sites for each experience.

This is done essentially through a series of media queries (Huh? Simply put the web site “Queries” the devices display resolution it is being consumed on and then based on that answer instigates a set of rules that dictate the layout, etc) A fluid layout design is developed to accommodate these scenarios.

Why should I be interested?

Well, hold up a sheet of paper in front of half your screen whilst viewing your current website, or stand ten feet away and try and read the content, that’s what your website is going to look like in a few years time to a very large part of your users.

The general consensus is that in the very near future, most people will mainly experience the web on some sort of mobile device (Smartphone, Tablet) than they do on a traditional desktop or laptop. This means your web presence has to accommodate and adapt to this shift if it doesn’t want to be ignored by this large and growing segment of web users.

“Phones are already more popular than PCs. New research by Canalys shows that 2011 global smartphone shipments topped those of client PCs — including desktops, laptops, netbooks, and tablets — for the first time.”

From Canalys. Read full article here:

“Smartphone Sales Will Dwarf PC Sales This Year And Reach A Staggering 1.5 Billion Per Year By 2016.”

From Business Insider.Read full article here:

By optimising your website for your users depending on how they consume it you are removing barriers to conversions and reducing drop out rates. Notable features of Responsive Design include revised navigation methods to make it easier to use the site on smaller screens, reordered content to make reading and journey completion easier, and the ability to add or remove content for different devices, hopefully you’re starting to see the potential here?

For a quick example have a look at http://www.fork-cms.com/ Just grab the bottom right corner of your browser window and close it up and open it again etc, and you’ll see how the content re-orders itself depending on the display space available and remains very useable, you can easily see how this site will look on a narrow Smartphone display.

What are the issues from a client point of view?

As anybody will tell you, you won’t get all that web loveliness above for nothing, currently developing and designing a responsive site is a longer (and for developers and designers a sometimes torturous process) it’s been likened to herding cats or nailing jelly to a wall. What works in one size and orientation may not in another. So the development cycle can take longer. Having said that many new Frameworks have become available recently which enable very stable-cross browser/platform sites to be developed more rapidly these include Twitter Bootstrap (http://twitter.github.com/bootstrap/) and Foundation from Zurb.com (http://foundation.zurb.com/) to name but a few.

How can a web agency demonstrate this responsive concept to clients? Well, traditionally clients may have been presented with static mockups of the sites main pages and wireframes explaining the rest, but this doesn’t convey well the nature and benefits of Responsive Design. Current thinking is to use basic stripped down websites as a kind of HTML wireframe with no branding and simple styling, these help clients see what is happening to content as it is re-sized (and this helps clients see the functionality and user journey better I think). From a visual design point of view the design of static pages will be overtaken by the focus on elements within the page and e.g. Product item area, a Call to Action template, a gallery or light-box display, form elements as well as the basic branding and typography.

What about images, can they be resized to fit different layouts? Short answer, yes and no. Part of the fun of Responsive Websites is that images can be resized automatically in the code, the question is, do you want them to be? The catchall thinking was that images would be resized to fit the width of the device, or containing element below a given resolution by default. But this isn’t always the best option – who wants to see a thumbnail stretched and pixelated across the width of their phone? So there are several ideas around currently, one involves serving different sized images where required at higher resolutions again via media queries. There are also several third party solutions will automatically re-size images and serve them at the correct resolution. Like http://adaptive-images.com/. So careful thought has to be given to use of images particularly in Content Managed Systems.

The future?

The clever bit here, as I mentioned above is that the screen size is being judged, not the device, so in in this sense it is very future proof, if a new device is launched next year, that’s fine as the site will simply query the devices dimensions (and orientation – cool, eh?) and serve up the content as per it’s instructions. For example many new SmartTV’s with web access are arriving on the market, no problem, the responsive web is ready to handle it.

Additionally because we can control how the site changes for different screens, assuming smaller screens are for mobile devices this gives us the opportunity to optimise the interface for touch screen, for example make buttons larger and easier to use, refine shopping carts for easier use on smaller screens, ensure navigation doesn’t take up most of the screen but is still easy to use.

And the good news is that all of this can be done in one go, no longer will you look to have a “regular” website and then look to have a “mobile” version developed at extra cost. Additionally as this is “browser” technology it doesn’t even care if it’s on an Apple or Android device.

The future is bright and it’s going to be in lots of different shapes!

At Crush, we are dedicated to providing successful online digital strategies. This means a few things:

• We only deal in online. We are not a marketing agency that has a digital online ‘add on’. We specialise in it. We live and breath online. This means that we know what we are doing and what the best way of you achieving online success is.

• Secondly, we deal with online strategies, not just websites. So, that means that we spend time understanding your business issues, your key business goals and translate that into a workable plan that can be monitored. After all, we all need a Return on Investment. Crush will be committed to give you this ROI.

So, what will we do if you ask us to perform a Free Website Audit?

• We will have a brief chat with you. We need to understand your requirements and goals. Also what you think is working and what is not working so that we can concentrate our time on the areas that will provide most value to you.

• We will review your website and critique it based on your business goals. Particularly, we will look at:

  • Design

  • Look and feel of website and user experience

  • Content and management thereof

  • Calls to action

• We will review your search engine results, including a keyword review. We want to know how many people are searching for what you have to offer and how much of this traffic is coming to your website. By doing this, we can give you improvement suggestions.

• We will review your Social Marketing success.

As a result of this review, we will help you see how:

• More relevant traffic can come to your website and

• Once there, maximise the number of conversions

To finalise the audit, we will send you a written report and discuss any areas with you.

The audit is free, so what do you have to lose! Call 0845 658 1657
or Email hello@crushdigital.co.uk

For a number of years we have been told “this will be the year of Mobile”. And then another year passes without that promise materialising. So what’s the problem?

The technologies have existed for a while to reach mobile users with targeted services. Those campaigns however often failed at building a relationship with a bigger number of users and ended up doing more than could be offset by the sales they were generating. The key to success is the “Right Moment”

Smartphones have helped to turn this situation around.

• Providing near permanent access to the internet
• Allowing users to access the web at a time where they are receptive or interested to your proposition. i.e. the “Right Moment”

With take up of mobile devices users soon got fed up with the inferior experience offered, long load times and even “Text” versions of the site. So it’s not surprising that companies wanted their mobile site to be optimised to give the best possible experience.

The arrival of iphones and the android operating system that could replicate the experience of a desktop browser on a mobile device have helped turn things around. But this was still a matter of making an experience designed for one platform fit into a completely different one.

Users wanted an experience and content crafted to suit the device they were using and so we find ourselves with mobile apps. This is a true mobile experience and allows companies and organisations to deliver a user experience custom tailored to the device they are using.

The problem with apps however is:

• Number of apps a user has is limited by device storage space
• Why would a user even use an app if they can access the same and competing services online.
• The extra development cost
• Issues have also arisen with major distributors of mobile apps , their commissions and censorship.

So the ideal solution is to offer a mobile web experience that is always available to the user and makes the most of their devices capabilities. Enter HTML5 and Responsive Design!.

HTML5 and Responsive Design can offer:

• a dynamically different interface optimised to users of mobile devices.
• Content is based on the same source code.
• Cheaper to develop than separate sites or apps
• Future proof as experience not dependant on actual device but screen resolution and orientation.

We have seen an increase of over 20% in the last year of visitors using mobile devices. Other sectors we work in have experienced an even greater rise. This isn’t a surprise given the benefits of mobile web where users can choose to interact with sites at the “Right Moment”.

In the web of 2012 any company or organisation serious about their online presence needs to offer an alternative that maximises the many advantages of mobile users.

This year we have witnessed a lot of movement in the digital arena starting with Google trying to gain a bigger share of the social media market with google +, its usual changes in the algorithm used to rank pages and, recently, the encryption of analytics data making some of the traffic information “not available” to users.

We have also witnessed a massive revamp of facebook and its applications which, in our opinion, position facebook in track to become a web inside the wider web. With its membership reaching 1 billion it is the most successful social venture yet. Not to undermine other online initiatives like Groupon, LinkedIn and Twitter that have manage to consolidate their offering beyond the geek community along 2011. Twitter and facebook took a massive leap forward when they were crucial at organising massive social movements from the Arab Spring to last summer riots in England.

Other platforms like Spotify follow on the success, this time in the opposite direction. When Spotify’s business model was questioned by many they decided to cross the Atlantic and expand into the States. This has proven to be an enormously successful move which together with its alliance with facebook has seen Spotify reaching to a 2500000 strong premium membership.

In other aspects of the web Broadband has not managed to deliver fast speed throughout as we all expected but it remains a clear target by the government to deliver it (http://www.ispreview.co.uk/story/2011/09/22/uk-governments-bduk-office-corrects-superfast-broadband-speed-confusion.html).

Web TV is still a reality used by a small minority, although there are plenty of options like apple tv, google tv, Boxee to name just a few. And regardless of services like Netflix and others offering content on demand, Web TV is far from reaching mass usage. As the first TVs come to the market with internet access already set up we believe this year may well be the year for the expansion of Web TV into most households. This would provide businesses with new ways to interact with a big audience.

2011 also showed a continuous increase of the users accessing the web through mobile devices. This has created the need for businesses to consider the experience it offers to its mobile users as a must. One of the best examples must be Amazon 1 click buy. Constant improvements in hand held devices and tablets will mean we will see more of this.

All of the above does reinforce the power of the web as a communication tool and even after 15 years the massive potential still remaining to be untapped, The web will continue to change the way we interact one with each other by adding more option rather than replacing them, the way we shop, the way we learn and even the way we watch TV.

The CRUSH team wishes you all the best for 2012 and a Merry Christmas.

Good content on your website is at least as important as good design. Indeed, they both go hand-in-hand. Content is about getting your point across in an effective manner, keeping the reader’s interest and getting the reader into a position of taking the action you are looking for.

Getting your point across

Content can be highly subjective so unfortunately there is not a test for good content. However, there are a number of ways that you can keep the interest of readers:

• Make it visual. Most good websites have good visual images. This is a better form of communication than many words of text. Try to have something that has great visual impact and the reader will remember your site and be more inclined to stay for longer and come back.
• Make it useful. Is there some information that you can put on the website that makes the reader want to come back or check a fact?
• Make it entertaining. It’s not always easy to make a website humorous but it will be much more memorable.
• Thought of video? If you have a complex story to tell, a well produced video can often help make the point. You can tell the story, show an environment, show products being made/assembled etc
• Focus on what you do and what benefits you will deliver to your customer. Many website owners talk about themselves and we all like to do that, reinforcing our successes etc. Whilst this is very important, the first question that the website reader is asking is about the benefits. Best examples of benefits are tangible, including case studies where appropriate.
• Once the reader is sold on the benefits, then they are looking for reassurance on the quality of the company delivering but only as a secondary.
• If you want to give a lot of detail, think of having downloadable documents. These documents, typically in a pdf format will allow you put as much detail as you want to an interested reader, without clogging up the website for uninterested readers.
• Think of your competition and how your website compares to them. It is a reasonable assumption that your website reader will also look at your competitors’ websites. So, have a look at these and think of what makes you different – why should I buy from you rather than them. By reviewing your competitors’ websites, you can make the key differentiators clear.
• Make authoritative and dynamic. Blogging and relevant news articles are important to many good websites. They create a reason for the reader to come back to the website. However, by good blogging, it also gives you a position to make your point and give you an authoritative position. This can go down very well with readers and helps create you as an expert.
• Frequently Asked Questions. A good FAQ section in a website can help answer many questions in the right format. This can include customers with a query that, perhaps, has been asked by others in the past.

The role of content in search engine optimisation

And of course, content reflecting key words used for your search engine optimisation is essential. A skill of a web agency such as Crush will be to undertake keyword research and reflect this in your content to ensure that you have the best chance possible of your site being found.

Good content is a skill, is subjective but can be the difference between somebody reading your site and somebody turning away. Getting professional help with content (as well as website design) will often provide a very quick return on investment.

Crush can give you a well designed website with appropriate contents matching the objectives of your website. We also have innovative ways of helping you create and edit news for dynamic website content.

The Halo Effect – Getting Your Website Read

Content is king? Of course it is – we all know that? But how do we know which content is worth investing our time reading, without first reading everything on the screen? What process makes us stay on the page and want to further engage with it?

Well, you’re doing it now. Before you started reading this email, you took in the cues from the title of the email, the design and layout, our logo, etc. and made a decision about it’s quality, authority and value amongst other things, and decided to read on, all in a fraction of a moment.

This first impression is known as the “Halo effect” as it also spreads to our assumptions about the quality of the content and the company. As Dr Lindgaard put it in an article in “Behaviour and Information Technology”:

“Since people like to be right, they will continue to use the website that made a good first impression, as this will further confirm that their initial decision was a good one”

How do we use the Halo effect to make the most of your message in terms of design? True, if users decide your message isn’t important to them, no amount of good design will encourage them to act on this message. However, by using principles of good design you can make your business stand out from the others and position yourself as a voice of quality and authority, making it more likely that users will want to start a relationship with you and your brand.

These principles include having the appropriate visual appeal for your target market including:

• Branding
• Colour scheme
• Layout
• And never under-estimate the power of simplicity.

But extend also to the “User Experience” which includes:

• Clearly communicate your primary message
• Tone of voice
• Logical flow through the design (website or email)
• Clear and prominent “Calls to Action” where a user is most likely to expect them
• Any promised follow up action is carried out, e.g. request for information

This is as true on an email as it is on a webpage – essentially removing any barriers to the user “listening” to you and acting.

We would love to talk to you in more detail about this – over the phone or, even better, face-to-face. Call 0845 658 1657. You have nothing to lose!

How could Crush help you?

At Crush our design philosophy is based around putting the user at the centre of the design. Well thought out navigation structures and information hierarchies make the site logical for the user to use successfully. According to market research from Gartner Group, 50% plus of online sales are lost because visitors simply can’t find what they are looking for! So, whatever you invest in your website, you should get a high Return on Investment from one that is well designed.

By following the points outlined above we believe we can help your business build it’s own Halo Effect. Why not contact us today?

Expect the impossible but don’t rely on hope or miracles, this is long term marketing, be patient, be prepared to review and adapt and use expert help to deliver results.

Can your clients find you?

You’ve built a fantastic web-site and it says all the right things to all of your prospective customers. But if these very people can’t find you, what good is that going to do to your business? There are millions upon millions of web-sites out there so how do you get found in a web search with all that competition?
Search Engine Optimisation is the most effective way to ensure you get to the top of the Search Engine rankings. The higher you are up the search rankings, the more the prospective client will click through to your website.

Search Engine Optimisation

There are various ways that your website can move up the rankings. Here are 3 ways;

Keywords: It’s possible to find the words and phrases that people are using to search for websites in your sector. Some will be more popular than others – and obviously the more popular will have greater competition with other websites. However, by identifying these words and phrases, you can ensure that you have a good chance of success by using them in your website content and page indexing.

Dynamic content: If the content of your site changes often, the search engines will reindex your pages more frequently. This doesn’t mean that you have to rewrite your site regularly – but many websites now have news, blogging and social media connections which act as a trigger for the search engines to notice your website.

Backlinks: You may use Email Marketing activities. Anything that has links back to your website gives a greater chance of search engine recognition.

How many visitors is enough?

Is SEO the answer? Well, yes and no. Give it time and it will work, but it does take time to get the right visitors. And it’s not always about volume. As a business owner/manager, you are looking for customers. If you just get volume of the wrong visitors, then that won’t really help.

Unfortunately, it does mean that SEO is a task that is never finished. The web is constantly changing, customers change, your competitors change and you must be ready to change with them. Digital marketing is no different to any other kind of marketing in that respect.

How could Crush help you?

We only work in digital. We only ever have worked in digital. That means, with a heritage of 12 years in the business (a lifetime in this industry) we know what we are doing and can support our clients to deliver results from their website. For further information see our website http://www.crushdigital.co.uk or call 0845 658 1657 for a chat.

Expect the impossible but don’t rely on hope or miracles, this is long term marketing, be patient, be prepared to review and adapt and use expert help to deliver results.

We’re on the lookout for a Digital Account Manager that is extremely organised, and has excellent client service skills.

As part of CRUSH Digitals dedicated team, you will have the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects ranging from full website design and development, to creating and implementing social media and online marketing strategies. We work across a variety of B2C and B2B clients and sectors.

Good co-ordination and liaison skills are a must, along with passion, ambition and commitment to digital creativity.

You will be a strong client relationship builder and have solid management skills.

You will feel extremely passionate about all things digital, and have a minimum 2 year experience in a similar role.

You will manage a portfolio of clients, and oversee their projects from concept to completion.

You will understand and develop your clients business objectives, and be able propose and pitch your ideas and strategies to both clients, and the Crush design and development team.

You will be responsible for maximising opportunities within our existing portfolio, whilst also tasked with following up on new potential client enquiries.

Potential candidates should send through their CV to rafael [at] crushdigital.co.uk.

Crush is looking for a part-time marketing assistant to help the company and certain clients with marketing support. Our business is growing and we need a marketing assistant to help with the management of internal campaigns. Duties and responsibilities will include:
- Management of marketing campaigns
- 
- Lead identification
- PR assistance
- Organisation of events

The job will be part-time at present (probably 2 days a week) although has a good chance of going full-time as the business expands further.

The salary will be in the region of £17,000 – £18,000 pa, pro-rated to the actual amount of hours agreed.

The successful applicant must provide a CV and references and have some experience and interest in marketing. CV’s should be sent to graham[at]crushdigital.co.uk